Judges 9:30-41
30 When Zebul the leader of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger burned.
31 So using deception, he successfully sent messengers to Abimelech, saying, “Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his relatives have come to Shechem; and behold, they are stirring up the city against you.
32 So now, arise by night, you and the people who are with you, and lie in wait in the field.
33 Then in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, you shall rise early and attack the city; and behold, when he and the people who are with him come out against you, you shall do to them whatever you can.”
34 So Abimelech and all the people who were with him got up at night, and lay in wait against Shechem, in four units.
35 Now Gaal the son of Ebed went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate; and Abimelech and the people who were with him arose from the ambush.
Sure, here is the continuation of the text without the dividing lines.
36 When Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, “Look, people are coming down from the mountaintops!” But Zebul said to him, “The shadows of the mountains look like men to you.”
37 Gaal spoke up again and said, “Look, people are coming down from the center of the land, and one company is coming from the direction of the Diviners’ Oak.”
38 Then Zebul said to him, “Where is your big talk now, you who said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Are these not the people you despised? Go out now and fight with them!”
39 So Gaal went out in front of the citizens of Shechem and fought with Abimelech.
40 Abimelech chased him, and Gaal fled before him. Many fell wounded, up to the entrance of the gate.
41 Abimelech stayed in Arumah, and Zebul drove Gaal and his brothers out of Shechem.
Abimelech’s Retaliation
Zebul the ruler of the city
The key to not being swayed by the ups and downs of daily events is to have the conviction that “God is in control of history.” God is the ruler of history and ultimately, He will surely accomplish His plans. In today’s passage, we see God’s judgment coming upon Gaal, the son of Ebed, who uttered abusive words, and upon the people of Shechem. The instrument God used to punish them was Abimelech. Interestingly, Abimelech’s reason for retaliation and God’s reason for using him were not the same. (1) Abimelech attacked the people of Shechem because of Gaal’s rebellion against him. (2) However, God was punishing the inhabitants of Shechem for the sin of killing the 69 sons of Jerubbaal (Gideon). Zebul, the ruler of the city, advised Abimelech to advance his troops into Shechem during the night and attack the city at dawn. So, Abimelech divided his forces into four groups and laid an ambush towards Shechem.
Gaal flees
Early next morning, Gaal stood at the entrance of the gate to inspect the city’s defenses and observe the enemy’s movements. We can see here that he too, was a capable commander. At that moment, Abimelech’s army came down from the mountain and rushed toward the city gate. Seeing Abimelech’s army attacking, Gaal’s face turned pale. Zebul, the ruler of the city, mocked Gaal and taunted him for boasting in the past and said to him that he should go out and fight Abimelech immediately.
The battle that day ended in Abimelech’s victory. Many of Gaal’s soldiers were killed, and Gaal himself was driven out of the city of Shechem. However, because the gate was closed again, Abimelech could not enter the city. He waited for an opportunity to massacre the people of Shechem. In the 21st century, there are mountains of problems, many seemingly unsolvable. The more we think about it, the more disheartened we become. However, let us remember that nothing is impossible for God. God is the one who will surely bring justice to history. For ourselves, let us always seek to advance in “the kingdom of God and His righteousness.”
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, You are the ruler of history. May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. I pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.